The SCCF Sea Turtle Research and Monitoring Program has been monitoring and protecting sea turtles on Sanibel and Captiva Islands since 1992.

December 19, 2013

Green Sea Turtle Release on December 17, 2013

Tuesday’s release of a rehabilitated green sea turtle
presents a well-timed opportunity for me to make my first blog post and introduce
myself to the turtlers of Sanibel and Captiva! My name is Kelly Sloan and I
recently replaced Amanda Bryant as the sea turtle program coordinator for
Sanibel-Capitva Conservation Foundation. Before coming to Sanibel I worked as a
sea turtle biologist for the South Carolina Department of Natural Resources for
almost seven years. Releasing a rehabilitated sea turtle was a great welcome to
the island!

On November 18, 2013 this 18 kilogram, juvenile green sea
turtle was found floating by Red Anders in Pine Island Sound near North
Captiva. The turtle was in good physical
shape other than a few very small superficial abrasions to the plastron, but
because the animal was lethargic and unable to dive, Red and Amanda transported
the turtle to the Clinic for the Rehabilitation of Wildlife (CROW) on Sanibel.

Green sea turtle being transported to CROW. Photo by: SCCF

CROW staff members took bloodwork and learned that she was
suffering from brevetoxicosis. Brevetoxins are neurotoxins (nerve toxins)
produced by the red tide dinoflagellate Karenia
brevis and they are known to be toxic to many marine organisms including
fish, marine mammals, and sea turtles. This turtle needed to stay until the toxin was
completely out of her system, but she was quickly deemed healthy enough to be
transferred from critical care to an outdoor tank. She was even eating and
diving like a normal turtle within just a few days of arrival!

Green sea turtle admitted at CROW. Photo by SCCF

Thanks to the dedicated staff at CROW, this turtle was ready
for release thirty days after she was admitted. As soon as her bloodwork was
normal they tagged her with PIT tags and flipper tags to prepare for her release
into the wild. The release team included Red and Kristie Anders, Kat McDonough
and Kate Bender (CROW rehabilitators), and myself.

Leaving the dock to release the rehabilitated sea turtle. Photo by Kristie Anders.

It was a perfect afternoon on the water. No one minded being
bounced around a bit on the boat ride out to the release site, which was the
same spot that Red originally found her floating a month earlier. We were even
greeted by a pod of dolphins right before we sent her on her way. Red and I had the honor of releasing her, and
she didn’t waste any time swimming off! We did catch a glimpse of her taking a
breath of air before she swam out of sight.

Red and Kelly releasing the turtle. Photo by Kristie Anders.

This was a very memorable experience with my first Florida
sea turtle! I’m excited to take over as
your fearless leader and look forward to the 2014 turtle season. Please don’t
hesitate to call me at (239) 472-3984 with any questions regarding the sea
turtle program. Happy holidays!

About Me

The SCCF Sea Turtle Program is a group of over 100 volunteers and SCCF staff that monitor and protect sea turtles on Sanibel and Captiva Islands. For more information, visit SCCF's website at www.sccf.org or find us on Facebook at http://www.facebook.com/SanibelCaptivaConservationFoundation